The Tab Separated Value file format is a common structuring strategy for text format files. In tab separated value flies, each line in the file represents a row of data and, within each line of the file, the different data fields are separated from one another using a tab spacing. Gnumeric handles tab separated value files through the text importer and exporter but this format is given its own definition in this document because it is such a common format.
Gnumeric will automatically open Tab Separated Value format files separating each row into columns based on the presence of tab characters in the file. If the automatic import leads to any errors, these can generally be corrected by using the "Text Import (configurable)" file format instead. Selecting that file format will launch the Text Import druid which allows the user to import Tab Separated Value format files while specifying in greater detail the settings of the import configuration parameters. See the section on importing text files or the section on exporting text files for an explanation of how to open or save Tab Separated Value format files through the Text Import druid.
| Name: | Tab Separated Value |
| Extensions: | .tsv / .tab |
| Compatible Programs: | Multiple |
| Import / Export: | Both |
The tab separated value file format is only useful for the exchange of cell data and cannot be used for sheet objects like graphical plots. This file format cannot save the formatting of cell contents, backgrounds or borders.
Supported by the core Gnumeric program.
Tab separated value files are simple text files where each row of the text file represents one row in the spreadsheet and where the cells within a row are separated from each other by a comma.
Tab separated value files can be processed using any tool which operates on text files. The tab separated value format is also common as a format which can be opened by applications.
See the section on Text Formats